Julie R Gaither, PhD, MPH, RN
Cards
About
Titles
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (General Pediatrics) and Epidemiology (Chronic Disease Epidemiology)
Biography
Dr. Gaither is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (General Pediatrics) and Public Health (Chronic Disease Epidemiology). She obtained her doctorate in epidemiology from the Yale School of Public Health in 2015. After completing a post-doctoral fellowship in bioinformatics, she joined the faculty of the Yale School of Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics. Her research focuses on the impact of the opioid crisis on vulnerable populations, work she began more than a decade ago as part of her dissertation research, for which she received a National Research Service Award from the NIH to study the association between opioid prescribing practices and all-cause mortality among U.S. veterans. In 2015, she began working on a project that allowed her to bridge her interests in adult medicine with that of pediatrics, which resulted in the first national publication to examine hospitalizations for opioid poisonings in children. She followed this work with the first national study to examine pediatric deaths from opioids. Prior to these publications, most of what was known about opioid-related morbidity and mortality came from the adult overdose literature. To date, she has published 56 papers in peer-reviewed journals and her research has been supported by awards from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Center for Advancing Translational Science, the Patterson Trust, the Hood Foundation, and most recently, the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
Appointments
General Pediatrics
Assistant ProfessorPrimaryChronic Disease Epidemiology
Assistant ProfessorSecondary
Other Departments & Organizations
- Chronic Disease Epidemiology
- FRESH Collaborative
- Gaither Lab
- General Pediatrics
- Janeway Society
- Pediatrics
- Yale School of Public Health
Education & Training
- PhD
- Yale University, Epidemiology and Public Health (2015)
- MPH
- Boston University, School of Public Health (2005)
- BSN
- Georgia Southern University, Nursing (1990)
Research
Publications
Featured Publications
US National Trends in Pediatric Deaths From Prescription and Illicit Opioids, 1999-2016
Gaither JR, Shabanova V, Leventhal JM. US National Trends in Pediatric Deaths From Prescription and Illicit Opioids, 1999-2016. JAMA Network Open 2018, 1: e186558. PMID: 30646334, PMCID: PMC6324338, DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.6558.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsOpioid poisoningPediatric deathsMortality rateUS national trendsPublic health problemPediatric mortality rateNational trendsPublic health officialsIllicit opioidsPrescription opioidsAge-specific mortality ratesOpioid deathsOpioid epidemicMAIN OUTCOMEOpioidsHealth problemsOpioid crisisPoisson regressionSynthetic opioidsDisease controlMortality dataHealth officialsDeathMedical facilitiesChildrenRacial disparities in discontinuation of long-term opioid therapy following illicit drug use among black and white patients
Gaither JR, Gordon K, Crystal S, Edelman EJ, Kerns RD, Justice AC, Fiellin DA, Becker WC. Racial disparities in discontinuation of long-term opioid therapy following illicit drug use among black and white patients. Drug And Alcohol Dependence 2018, 192: 371-376. PMID: 30122319, PMCID: PMC7106601, DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.05.033.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsLong-term opioid therapyIllicit drug useUrine drug testsDrug useOpioid therapyWhite racePositive urine drug testDrug testsMonths of treatmentElectronic medical recordsWhite patientsChronic painPatient raceMedical recordsPatientsLogistic regressionOpioidsRacial disparitiesDrug testingCocaineCannabisTherapyCliniciansDiscontinuationPainRural Versus Urban Hospitalizations for Firearm Injuries in Children and Adolescents
Herrin BR, Gaither JR, Leventhal JM, Dodington J. Rural Versus Urban Hospitalizations for Firearm Injuries in Children and Adolescents. Pediatrics 2018, 142: e20173318. PMID: 29967056, DOI: 10.1542/peds.2017-3318.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsFirearm injuriesHospitalization ratesInpatient DatabaseUnintentional injuriesCause of hospitalizationOverall hospitalization rateKids' Inpatient DatabaseUnintentional firearm injuriesCause of injuryYears of ageYounger age groupsPublic health approachHigher injury ratesUrban-rural classificationPatient's countyInjury epidemiologyInjury codesHospitalizationInternational ClassificationInjury ratesInjuryAge groupsHealth approachUS Census dataFirearm assaultsHospitalizations Due to Firearm Injuries in Children and Adolescents
Leventhal J, Gaither J, Sege R. Hospitalizations Due to Firearm Injuries in Children and Adolescents. 2017, 33-39. DOI: 10.1542/9781610022750-hospitalizations.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchFirearm-related injuriesYears of ageFirearm injuriesSuicide attemptsHospitalization ratesFirearm-related hospitalizationsPublic health effortsInpatient DatabaseNinth RevisionChildhood injuriesHospitalized casesRisk ratioInjury codesClinical ModificationHospitalizationInternational ClassificationUS childrenHealth effortsInjuryWhite malesChildrenRecent national attentionIntercensal populationMalesIncidenceThe effect of substance use disorders on the association between guideline-concordant long-term opioid therapy and all-cause mortality
Gaither J, Goulet J, Becker W, Crystal S, Edelman E, Gordon K, Kerns R, Rimland D, Skanderson M, Justice A, Fiellin D. The effect of substance use disorders on the association between guideline-concordant long-term opioid therapy and all-cause mortality. Drug And Alcohol Dependence 2017, 171: e68. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2016.08.196.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchNational Trends in Pediatric Deaths From Fentanyl, 1999-2021
Gaither J. National Trends in Pediatric Deaths From Fentanyl, 1999-2021. JAMA Pediatrics 2023, 177: 733-735. PMID: 37155161, PMCID: PMC10167597, DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.0793.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2022
Child safety assessments during a caregiver's evaluation in emergency departments after intimate partner violence
Butala N, Asnes A, Gaither J, Leventhal JM, O'Malley S, Jubanyik K, Aydin A, Tiyyagura G. Child safety assessments during a caregiver's evaluation in emergency departments after intimate partner violence. Academic Emergency Medicine 2022, 30: 23-31. PMID: 36300559, DOI: 10.1111/acem.14614.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsIntimate partner violenceChild protective servicesPartner violenceSocial work involvementSafety of childrenEmergency departmentPresence of childrenIPV episodesProtective servicesChild safetyAdult victimsWork involvementViolencePhysical abuseDirect witnessCPS reportsCritical opportunityICD-10-CM codesChildren's exposureEncountersChart reviewED encountersNature of exposureHomeHigh prevalenceFalse Controversy Regarding Abusive Head Trauma Endangers Vulnerable Children
Edwards G, Maguire S, Gaither J, Leventhal J. False Controversy Regarding Abusive Head Trauma Endangers Vulnerable Children. Child Abuse Review 2022, 31 DOI: 10.1002/car.2785.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchTrends from 2005 to 2018 in child maltreatment outcomes with caregivers' substance use
He Y, Leventhal JM, Gaither JR, Jones EA, Kistin CJ. Trends from 2005 to 2018 in child maltreatment outcomes with caregivers' substance use. Child Abuse & Neglect 2022, 131: 105781. PMID: 35820322, DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2022.105781.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCircumstances of injury in children with abusive versus non-abusive injuries
Eysenbach L, Leventhal JM, Gaither JR, Bechtel K. Circumstances of injury in children with abusive versus non-abusive injuries. Child Abuse & Neglect 2022, 128: 105604. PMID: 35339797, DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2022.105604.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
Links & Media
News
- February 28, 2024
Yale Pediatrics Poster Presenters at PAS 2024
- October 04, 2023Source: Newsweek
America Can Do More To Protect Its Children From Opioid Overdose | Opinion
- July 26, 2023Source: CT Examiner
Yale Report Details Surge in Child Deaths from Fentanyl in Connecticut
- May 11, 2023Source: LA Times
‘No child should be dying’: Fentanyl-related deaths among kids rising, Yale study says